5 Fun & Festive 4th Of July Crafts For Kids

The 4th of July holiday is right around the corner, and what better way to kick off the celebration than with some crafts? Besides swimming, BBQ-ing, and fireworks, we’ve got some fun 4th of July crafts for the kids to enjoy as well! These are simple and easy activities that can also be repurposed for other holidays and events. Awesome, right? Even better, if you need some of the supplies, they are easily found at your local craft store where you can use their store coupon (if the item isn’t already on sale, that is). If you can save, why not?

So, let’s dig in, and bring out that 4th of July spirit with these 4th of July crafts for kids! Happy 4th to everyone!

1. Patriotic Parfait

Yes, you heard correctly. A parfait. What’s more magical than a craft you can eat? Most of all, this craft took five minutes and is such a light and refreshing dessert after a heavy eating session of BBQ, macaroni salad, or potato salad, to name a few! All you need are strawberries, blueberries, whipped cream, and clear plastic cups. Mini marshmallows are optional!

Wash both fruits, and dice your strawberries so they are medium-sized (as long as they can fit in your cup nicely). Grab a clear plastic cup, and let’s start building your parfait!

The first layer (bottom layer) should be a fruit. You will be rotating between the fruit and whipped cream a few times. And if you want a healthier option, you can sub in yogurt instead of whipped cream.

You can top it off with mini marshmallows. Ta-da! You’ve built your own patriotic parfait. My boys were total fans and now request to eat these all the time.

2. Fireworks Centerpiece

These centerpieces are great decor around the house and for your 4th of July celebration. There are many creative ways to create centerpieces, but we used what we had in my craft stash (except for the glitter beads).

For this project, you will need white paper cups, pipe cleaners (red, white, and blue), beads (red, white, blue, gold, and silver; we bought a set of glitter beads at Hobby Lobby), paint, and paintbrushes.

Create a small-to-medium hole on the bottom of the cup. I used an X-acto knife, but you can use whatever tool you have on hand. Obviously, anything sharp and pointy should be handled by adults, not by the kids.

Once the hole is created, make sure the cup is upside down before you begin painting. Paint to your heart’s content!

While the cup is drying, you will start on the “fireworks.” Take a pipe cleaner and begin putting the beads on it by alternating colors. We had a maximum of six beads per pipe cleaner. Make sure your beads are spaced out at 1-inch intervals. For the cups that my boys and I made, we were able to make about six of them fit in each hole we created.

And there you have it. A fantastic, homemade centerpiece!

Fun note: If you can find glitter beads, it really makes the “fireworks” look livelier!

3. Popsicle Stick Hanging Stars

I came across this craft on Pinterest, and it’s such a cute and fun painting project. You will need popsicle sticks, twine, and glue (glue gun is best since it dries quickly, but regular glue is fine as well). You can find the activity on The Keele Deal, where she lists it as a Popsicle Stick Stars Door Hanger. I left the door hanger out on my part since we hung it up on our wall (to keep it out of my two-year old’s hands!).

We laid out the popsicle sticks and painted a total of 15 sticks: five in each color. My 6.5-year-old had other ideas for his first set of five and painted them bomb-pop style (remember those yummy bomb pops?!).

We painted one side of the stick first and let it dry for about five minutes before painting the other side. Then we assembled the stars together and added the twine (which you can also get at the Dollar Tree).

The end result is just beautiful!

4. Patriotic Pinwheels

This pinwheel activity from Modern Mami is an effortless way to add some fun decor. Be forewarned: These pinwheels are stationary and are not meant for spinning. All you need are cardstock or craft paper in the 4th of July theme (I bought ours from Hobby Lobby when they had their 4/$1 sale), thin wooden dowels, assorted buttons in 4th of July colors, and glue (glue gun is best for quick-drying, but craft glue will also work!).

This project will require some steady hands during the folding process. But it is most definitely one of the quickest projects to complete. We created our pinwheels in about 10 to 15 minutes. My 9.5-year-old and I did most of the work, but the 6.5-year-old was a great helper in the cutting department!

And then we went ahead and folded the papers, secured them to the dowels, and added the buttons.

These pinwheels would be great in the front yard or in a cute little mason jar. The sky’s the limit!

5. Paper Plate Wreath

While cruising Pinterest, I came across this paper plate wreath by Ria of Crafts by Ria. I thought of how interchangeable this wreath can be for other holidays and events! I didn’t use cardstock or glitter paper, but the assorted 4th of July craft paper we had left over from the pinwheel activity.

We cut stars of various sizes from the craft paper. I also cut out two stars from aluminum foil, and it definitely added some shine to the wreath!

Now, I usually use a glue gun for most craft projects as it dries quickly and is sturdier. In this case, the craft paper was too thin for my liking to use with a glue gun. And weirdly enough, I had no craft glue lying around. Strange, right? Unless my two-year-old got ahold of it… Anyway, I digress.

So, I went with the next best thing: washi tape! I used to hoard washi tape, so I have mass amounts on hand. I made the washi tape into “double-sided” tape, and it was perfect for the thin craft paper and paper plate wreath. The boys love washi tape in general and had a ball “pasting” their stars to the “wreath.”

Cut some twine and glue gun it to the wreath so you can hang it on the wall (like we did) or the door! Super easy craft!

Feeling the 4th of July spirit yet?

I hope you enjoy these crafts as much as my boys and I did. These are easy and simple crafts that you can tweak to your creativity.

Did you try any of these 4th of July crafts with your kids? Let us know in the comments below. Happy 4th of July!

About the Author

Barbara is a content writer hailing from the sunny state of California. As a wife and stay-at-home mom to three young boys, life definitely keeps her busy., alongside being a doctoral student. Writing is one of her favorite pastimes although reading and crocheting are neck and neck. In her rare, but spare time, you will find her snuggled up with a crochet project while watching reruns of her favorite shows on Netflix or hanging out with her boys. You can find more about her on her website, Vanna Creative.